achieve more than to be respected by any man. >> a tearful and reflective night across the world.

from johannesburg to the bay area, an outpouring of love and admiration for nelson mandela. live pictures from johannesburg, south africa,y it's friday morning. a new day for this proud and historic african nation. a steady stream of mourners and flowers have been singing and gathering throughout the night. good evening. thanks for joining us. it's a rare moment of worldwide unity tonight. nelson mandela has died. has rekindled the hope of a generation. cheryl hurd was here during mandela's visit in 1990. jean elle has the impact in the world of education and sports. we begin with the worldwide tribute happening as we speak. as dawn broke, the celebration

in south africa continues, the nation lovingly remembering the man. president obama said mandela's journey from prisoner to president, taught him the power of hope. >> we've lost one of the most influential, courageous and profoundly good human beings that any of us will share time with on this earth. >> reporter: mandela was born in south africa's black elite. but he led the movement against apartheid and was thrown in jail. tonight, south africans remember. >> our thoughts are with the millions of people across the world who embrace him as their own. >> reporter: when nelson mandela walked free after 27 years, he won the presidency, calling for

racial reconciliation. and he made it work. no retribution. no trials. just forgiveness and an example to all. the world embraced nelson mandela. the u.s. congress gave him highest honors. tonight, the white house's flag is at half-staff. and this sign is up at the apollo theater. leaders in south africa are consulting with mandela's family regarding the funeral plans. but it is expected south africa will begin 10 to 12 days of official mourning. he lived his life thousands of miles away. but mandela made impact in the bay area. that day in 1990, mandela visited oakland. the coliseum was alive with pride, cheers and hope. and cheryl herd was there at that visit. it was a shining moment for the bay area. >> reporter: it was, indeed. when nelson mandela came here to the oakland coliseum, he had

rock star status. he has a huge community base here in oakland. and i talked to one man who was instrumental in bringing him here. it was june 30th, 1990. a crowd of 60,000 people packed the oakland coliseum to see a man who embodied living history, nelson mandela. >> that day was such a celebration. >> reporter: sandre swanson was one person who helped bring mandela to america. >> he got out of the vehicle. and i had a chance to shake his hand. and he said this was a wonderful community. >> reporter: a community that supported mandela for years, to help dismantle apartheid in south africa. mandela also came to oakland because then-congressman rond l

dellum, was the first to introduce legislation against apartheid. >> many in oakland feel the special tie because of oakland's role with the port and the boycott of south african goods. >> reporter: long shoremen in oakland were the first to refuse to offload south african ships. and there were dozens of protests by students and civic leaders. >> reporter: paul cobb was arrested at a major anti-apartheid protest at u.c. berkeley. he was in the audience at the coliseum. >> oakland was the symbol of the city that fought and that constantly held the nation's feet to the fire. >> with his passing, we can't help but celebrate his life because it was one that embodied the spirit of gandhi and martin

luther king. >> reporter: his legacy will live on in this city forever. >> that day was unforgettable for so many of us here. new video tonight. one of the first prayer services. this was in capetown, south africa. desmond tutu offered his condolences to the mandela family. tutu himself, a social rights activist from south africa. mandela impacted the entire soul. he spoke passionately about the power of education and sports, a way to advance and unite. nbc bay area's jean elle joins us in san francisco with more. >> reporter: nelson mandela was not a big rugby fan. but he showed his support for south africa's all-white rugby team. and it was a game-changer for his country. the reverend avis brown remembers the historic moment.

>> i'm right there. >> reporter: reverend amos brown spent time with nelson mandela in south africa and here in the bay area. brown says president mandela's focus was unity. and he used sport to bring bitterly divided south africa together. >> and that was one of his most defining moments. when he showed up. to applaud the team. >> reporter: mandela wasn't just applauding any team. he showed up at the world cup victory game, wearing the team's jersey and hat. the team was all-white. everyone in the stands was white. the team and its fans were a symbol of apartheid. mandela changed that. >> and enabled black south africans to appreciate the sport of those who had been their

oppressors. >> reporter: instead of trying to destroy a racist sport, he used it to bring people together. now, they celebrate diversity on the field and in the stands. >> he gave us an example of what can and should be done. >> reporter: that amazing moment was made into a hollywood movie called "invictus." >> our coverage continues on our website. there you can find photos of mandela's life and more video of that visit to oakland in 1990. that's at nbcbayarea.com. a wet mess in martinez. gushing water from a broken water main. take a look at this. it's not known for sure. public works officials tell us the freezing temperatures might have caused that main to break. the water has been turned off.

but crews are on-site trying to fix and clean up the situation. the cold weather causing a lot of problems. and it might be getting colder. let's bring in chief meteorologist jeff ranieri. we're rivalling temperatures in alaska. >> 38 degrees in san jose. certainly cold. but the coldest temperature of the day went to napa, dropping to 16 degrees. certainly, a new record low for us. and one of the coldest temperatures all year long. it set scenes like this. fountains were frozen over and dangerous icy patches on those roadways. we're setting ourselves up for a repeat performance of that. 30 in napa. 28 in santa rosa. 45 in fremont. and 38 in san jose. so, the freeze warning remains in effect right now for most of the bay area. temperatures ranging 21 to 36 degrees. we'll have more on how low it's going to go for our cities across the bay area.

plus, details on low snow. and when we could get snow flurries. >> snow in the bay area. black ice blanketed roads in mall nut creek. crews were forced to close some of these streets. tune in for the latest weather and traffic conditions on our morning show. how about this? black ice on the ground and those are icicles on the degrees. a viewer sent in this picture. icicles on andrews elementary school. don't see that often. it was 25 degrees. you want to share a weather photo with us. go to nbc.com and click on the weather tab. severe weather will postpone the search tomorrow for a missing silicon valley executive

and his family. the terrain and the snow, only experienced search teams have been able to search for dale smith and his family. smith, flying from oregon to montana on sunday, when he reported engine trouble over central idaho. now, with more bad weather on the way, search teams are forced to stop for the time being. >> we have guys being up there in minus-degree weather for four days searching. and they're getting extremely tired, warn out. >> today, planes and helicopters searched with infrared equipment and found no sign of the plane or the family. after fremont police released surveillance video of a home burglar, the power of social media took over. this video was viewed 2 million times on youtube and 30,000 on facebook. it led to the arrest of this

man. fremont police said they had dozens of tips. now, to a developing story. a statewide amber alert is in effect after a teenager was abducted in the state of washington. elizabeth romero was abducted last seen wearing a white tank top, dark pants and a pink purse. her suspected kidnapper is this man. he was last seen driving a green ford escape with washington temporary registration. it's believed the suspect is headed for mexico. still ahead here, ipads and babies. the new product that has some parents concerned. also -- >> i would like to thank her. but she wants to remain anonymo anonymous. >> a random act of kindness provides some holiday help for one family. a look at the spirit of giving. and guess what? batkid is returning.

how the superhero will be saving the day this weekend in the bay area. and you recognize this guy? hey. late-night host jimmy fallon dropping by our studios.

fast food workers across the nation walked off the job today. they want to get paid more at places like jack in the box and mcdonald's. the employees want 15 bucks an hour and the right to form a

union. jean quan joined the protests. she says companies are making record profits. but cities and counties are forced to provide their underpaid workers with assistance. the virtual currency earned a vote of confidence on wall street. bitcoin dropped after china ease central bank banned institutions from trading with them. bitcoins carries unacceptable risk. this comes at the same time bank of america released its report. the virtual currency could be useful. new at 11:00, secret santas and tips for jesus. the spirit of the season has inspired many in the bay area to be in a giving mood. george outside a bar in san jose. >> reporter: this time of year, you hear some amazing stories,

raj. people opening up their wallets and helping others, especially those who are less fortunate. >> i don't know what happened to me. i'm just glad it did. >> reporter: her family will never forget this christmas. an anonymous woman showed the feeling of the season. paying for all but one dollar of her layaway at toys "r" us. >> wow. i should do that for someone. it was touching. i thought it was a wonderful thing to do. >> reporter: it's that time of year when people really want to help others. like the person who left a $1,000 tip on a $152 check for one server at tacolicious. it's part of a national phenomenon called tips for jesus. >> if you can afford it, go for it. it gives people a little extra something to help them because

paycheck to paycheck makes it hard. >> reporter: tracy and her husband are being a difference by being part of operation christmas child. >> you fill the shoe boxes. and they go all over the world to kids that don't normally get their gifts. >> reporter: she was so inspired by what an anonymous woman did for her family, she wants to pay it forward. >> i'm going to buy a couple gifts and give them to toys for tots. it's my turn to give back. >> reporter: the anonymous woman does this and buys layaways for a number of families. >> thank you, george. get ready for batkid, the sequel. after the 5-year-old's make-a-wish adventure came true, he's returning to the city on saturday. last month, how can you forget? miles scott played batkid, with the help of the entire city. this weekend, he'll be playing

fund-raiser by kicking off the brave the bay a 5k run. a tree dazzled a huge crowd. tonight's holiday tree lighting event started in 1929. the city's holiday tree the this cyprus known as uncle john's tree. great to see the christmas lights. but jackets and coats. >> felt like christmastime outside. we have the freeze warning in effect. you know the drill. this is our third night in a row of the freeze warnings, through 9:00 a.m. through tomorrow. temperatures range 26 to 31 degrees for most of the bay area. we are expecting warmer weather through saturday. this will be the last day of that freeze warning. we have a newly issued advisory. we could have one to three inches of snow above 2,500 feet

across the east bay and peninsula hills. i want to take you outside and get a look at the temperatures. locked in a freezer here with 38 degrees. 42 in san francisco. already close to record-setting territory there. and in the east bay, this will be one of the coldest spots throughout the morning hours. 7:00 a.m., 32 degrees. and 2:00 p.m., the thing is not that temperatures will be warming up. but the fact that the cloud cover will be increasing in that forecast. let's get you into what we can expect for tomorrow. overnight lows dropping. not as cold as we had this morning. we had some wind. 22 in napa. 24 in santa rosa. and 23 in novato. for the east bay, very chilly. low to mid 20s. 26 in walnut creek. and 28 in san jose. you can see every city we have on this map will likely be a new record-setting temperature as we head into that friday forecast. now, let's get a look at what you're going to notice here on

that microclimate forecast for your friday. the cloud cover will be increasing. a lot of sunshine in the morning hours. as we head through 2:00, 3:00, 4:00 and 5:00. temperatures anywhere from 48 to 50 degrees. 51 expected in san jose. for the north bay, east bay and trivalley, not too much of a difference. 52 in hayward. and 48 in santa rosa. now, let's get to the forecasting issue. the polar air that's been producing the lows is going to stay in place for the next two days. here comes this storm system dropping out of alaska as that moves across the bay, it's going to scoop up moisture. it could be enough to get a rain/snow mix across the bay area. 5:00 p.m. on friday, showers get close to santa rosa. then, as we advance this, by 11:00 tomorrow night, we'll get showers across san francisco

back to the east bay. this is when the temperatures will be the coldest. the best possibility of some snow flurries mixing towards the surface. and the best chances could be 7:00 and 8:00 in the morning. the bottom line on this, it looks like the best possibility of that snow will be 3:00 to 9:00 a.m. on saturday, for the east and south bay hills. highest accumulations, one to three inches there. on the valley floor for the entire bay area, watch out for the icy and slick roads. if you don't see snowfall at all, any water on the ground could likely ice over. in the forecast for saturday, the major snow will be at lake tahoe. temperatures near 16 degrees. and we're expecting a foot of snow skiers as we head throughout the saturday forecast. if snow flurries isn't good enough. you can head up to tahoe and get your fill, raj. >> enjoy this rare weather. but be careful. up next, lost and found. the pet reunion. more than three years in the

making.

maybe we're getting too high-tech. a classic baby bouncer got a high-tech makeover. and it's not sitting well. fisher-price added an ipad holder so tots can play with their ipad when they bounce around. they call it the activity seat for ipad. but parents and child development experts are slamming this twist. the american academy of pediatrics recommends no screen time for kids under the age of 2. a lost pet is found three years after running away. dasher ran away from his family when that family moved from san jose to fremont. this week, the cat was turned into an animal shelter in fremont. a microchip scan helped him track down his family. they were thrilled to see him. >> such a great cat. great with my kids. so, i mean, he's big now.

just feels great to see him and bring him home. >> gone for three years. dasher was living about two miles away. a homeowner was feeding him all this time. the owner sold the house and the buyers brought the cat to the shelter. just ahead, what happened to the sharks tonight. [ female announcer ] for those who love sweets

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you need safeway sugar for just a buck eighty-eight. and that magic thing that makes everyone want another only two ninety-nine for challenge butter. and when hands get messy, quite surely they'll say, yum! wow! yay! what a sweeter holiday. safeway. ingredients for life. we're talking 49ers. just around the corner from that big game. and also, the sharks. how are you doing? >> good, raj. the sharks are playing really well. and the penguins don't usually have a lot of success against the sharks. their last win against them, 2002. and earlier, the penguins coach called the sharks the best team in the league. naturally, this happened. we're scoreless in the second. pascal dupuis.

two minutes later, jayson megna, beating antii niemi. three minutes later, chris kunitz scores off the sidney crosby rebound. six-game win streak over for the sharks. three days away from 49ers/seahawks at the stick. the 49ers defense has to find a way to slow down russell wilson and the high-powered seattle offense. the seahawks second in the nfl, with 28.3 points per game. and it starts with the man under center. >> everybody thinks this guy is a freak quarterback. this guy is just a really good quarterback. he's not just a guy that runs around. he's a passer. and be a competent quarterback. >> he was a really, really tough guy. mentally tough guy. if we're going to beat him, we have to become mentally tough on defense and play each and every

as it's our last. >> one more news item, raj. bryan wilson, still a rival of the giants. he did resign with the dodgers, one year. >> it makes for good theater for all of us. we need someone to boo. >> absolutely. fodder. yep. >> thanks. we all have our little tricks.

mom swaps one of my snacks

for a yoplait. i don't mind, i mean it's orange crème. and when mom said bobby was too edgy... 'sup girl. i just swapped him out for tyler. 'sup girl. mom never questioned bobby again. two can play at this game. [ female announcer ] swap one snack a week for a yoplait. and everybody wins. yoplait. it is so good. in about an hour from now, jimmy fallon will host his now here on nbc bay area. earlier today, jeff, where were you today? >> sleeping. >> earlier today, fallon made a visit to our newsroom. we sat down with jimmy fallon. you can see our interview on our 6:00 newscast. and fallon has bay area ties. his wife, nancy, is from marin

county. fallon takes over "the tonight show" this february. about two months from now. i have to say. he was very genuine and even more funny in person. >> yeah. looks like you had a good time. >> we had a good time. the staff loved him. >> yes. >> he had a good time. thanks for joining us tonight. we hope to see you back here tomorrow. i love watching tv outside.

and why can you move the tv out here? the wireless receiver. i got that when i switched to u-verse. but why? because it's so much better than cable. it's got more hd channels, more dvr space. yeah, but i mean, how did you know? i researched. no, i-i told you. no. yeah! no. the important part is that you're happy now. and i got you this visor. you made a visor! yes! that i'll never wear. ohh. [ male announcer ] get u-verse tv for just $19 a month for two years with qualifying bundles. rethink possible.

[ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] >> jay: thank you very much! thank you, thank you. welcome to "the tonight show." thank you. very kind. thank you. oh, boy. hey, here's some big news. plans are being discussed for a